Pause!...Things I've Changed About My Hair Regimen

Spring is FINALLY upon us! For me that normally brings about a few changes to my hair regimen. Some things that work for me in the winter aren't necessary in the warmer months and some things...well they just aren't working at all! In addition to putting some techniques on hold I also brought back a few that my hair is totally digging right now!







Pause/Stopped

• Midweek Cowashes - Winter was ROUGH on my hair. The constant wind, snow, & below freezing temperatures left my hair always feeling thirsty! Between the harsh weather conditions and my daily dates with the gym I added midweek cowashes in addition to my weekly wash day to keep dryness and breakage at bay. Now that the weather is warming up and I've discovered an awesome conditioner that keeps my hair moisturized for longer I'm able to get away with 1 washday a week! However if I see where my hair needs that midweek cowash I will definitely add it back into my regimen 

• Tea Rinses - Quite frankly I've tried to make tea rinses work for me, but I don't see where they do much for my hair and I hate the way they make my hair feel. Since this was a no go this was an easy step to eliminate from my washday. 

• In/Out The Shower - For a while on every wash day I found myself hopping in and out of the shower 2-3 times. I soon realized that for me that's annoying and time consuming. By slightly rearranging the order of how I do things or just doing in between steps with my head over the sink or tub I was able to eliminate that. I'm LOVING it! 

• Being a Mixologist With Conditioners - I used to really enjoy mixing oils and conditioners together to create a magic concoction for my hair. Currently I'm so not feeling it! Right now I enjoy conditioners that can be used on my hair with no add ins, but still give me great results! 

Started/Resumed:

• Deep Condition on Semi Damp Hair - Somewhere along the way I started DCing my hair after shampooing. I'm not sure why, but eventually it dawned on me that it's not only easier, but my hair responds better when I DC first on semi damp hair. 

• Detangle Prior to DC - I used to do this and stopped because the detanglers that I was using would leave a yucky film on my hair. Well ever since I've discovered Mane N Tail I no longer have that problem. It melts my tangles like no other and makes my wash days so much easier. 

• Messy Buns - As my hair continues to grow my messy buns keep getting better and bigger. The bonus is that it's a super easy low manipulation daily protective style. 

• Weekend Hair Break - During the winter I was protective styling practically 100% of the time because between the wind and the harsh materials that winter clothing is made of it seemed best. However now that winter is gone I'm back to protective styling 5 days a week and enjoying the heck out of my hair on the weekend (usually with a dry flexi rod set or caruso steam rollers). I'm all for length retention, but a girl's gotta have a little fun too! 

Have any of you taken a pause on some things within your regimen? 

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It's My Birthday!!! Reflecting on Turning 26!

By the time you guys see this post I'll officially be 26! I have so many things to be grateful for. God has blessed me beyond belief so first of all I want to give all glory to him! As I sit back and think on this past year I realized that I've made some great strides in becoming a better person both spiritually and physically. Although not perfect and always trying to improve I am the healthiest I've ever been in my adult life. I have been more focused on clean eating and consistent exercise. I've finally reached the goal of Arm Pit Length (unofficially) and I have a wonderful family, boyfriend, friends, and blogger family. I truly enjoy blogging and am so thankful for each of you who takes the time to read and comment on my posts. So during this time of reflection I'm thankful and ready for year 26!


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Product Review | Dark & Lovely Curl Moisturizing Souffle

Price: $8.24

Place Of Purchase: Walmart (Although it is sold in Sally's, CVS, Walgreens, etc).

Ingredients: Aqua/Water/Eau, Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Esters, Glycerin, Amodimethicone, Behentrimonium Chloride, Parfum/Fragrance, Phenoxyethanol, Isopropyl Alcohol, Mangifera Indica Seed Oil/Mango Seed Oil, Trideceth-6, Cetrimonium Chloride, Benzyl Salicylate, Methylisothiazolinone, Linalool, Benzyl Alcohol, Limonene, Cl 19140/Yellow 5, Cl 15985/Yellow 6, Geraniol, Bambusa Vulgaris Sap Extract.

Promises: Au Naturale features mango oil, bamboo milk, and a tailor made menu that nourishes curls and coils with moisture and our very own anti-shrinkage recipe for a naturally elongated, incredibly soft and superbly defined look that lasts. Treat your curls and coils to our Coil Moisturizing Souffle, a moisturizing delight with a low crunchless hold that instantly defines and softens tight curls and coils. softsheen-carson.com. Made in Canada.

My Thoughts: Let me start by saying that this product smells amazing! Think tropical island in a jar! The consistency of this product is thin, but not watery. Because of the thin consistency not much of the product is needed. I normally apply the souffle to the lower third of my hair and ends. I've been using this product for about 2 months and so far I've had nothing, but amazing results each time I've used it! I purchased this product with the intent to be able to replace my foam wrap lotion. While wrap lotion does give my hair a great hold I find that sometimes it leaves a residue on my hair and I hate that feeling. I wanted something that would give my hair a nice crunchless hold and keep frizz at bad. I mainly use this product when setting my hair with flexi rods, perm rods, etc although I have a feeling that this product would work great for braid/twistouts as well. I've tested this product in rain, wind, humidity, extreme cold and each time my curls have survived! Needless to say this product is a keeper. I can't wait to see how well it works with bantu knots!

Here are what my curls looked like when using the curl soufflé. I'd been in the rain and wind for hours! My curls did fall a bit, but that's to be expected. With no product my hair would normally be a flat frizzy mess! 

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Give Me A Reason...Healthy Eating & Exercise Isn't Just For Weight Loss!

Can y'all believe it's Friday again already?! I seriously think that Fridays are my favorite day of the week. Fridays at work are always laid back and everyone is normally in a great mood because they are anticipating the weekend. This Friday is even more special because I'm an April baby and my birthday is next Sunday! I know y'all are probably like WHAT does this have to do with Fitness? I promise I'm about to make my point :) While working out in the gym this week my mind began to wonder (believe it or not I get a lot of my 'Fitness Friday' inspiration when I'm working out...Go Figure! Anywho, back to my point. I was in the gym working out and I began thinking about how great I've been feeling lately. My skin, muscle tone, the way I look in my clothes, flatter tummy. Like seriously I'm loving what clean eating and regular gym sessions has done for me. So I thought to myself that all of my Fitness Friday posts have basically been related to weight loss. Now don't get me wrong. I've lost weight and am proud of it, but I don't want anyone to think that the only reason I do what I do is for the sole purpose of losing weight. So in honor of that I'm going to give you guys 10 reasons why I eat healthy and exercise regularly.

1. My skin is clearer & has a glow! My skin is sensitive and acne prone. If I'm eating like crap and not exercising my skin will gladly let me know that it's NOT happy and that I need to get my life! *Insert Tamar Braxton voice*
2. I love what I see when I look in the mirror! As much as I love fried catfish and macaroni & cheese (I'm a true Southern girl!) if I eat like that 24/7 I'm not happy with what's looking back at me. 
3. I feel better! When I focus on clean eating & regular exercise I feel so much better overall. I have more energy and I feel accomplished. 
4. I'm Guilt free! I don't know about y'all, but when I've been eating like crap for weeks I feel SO guilty! I swear my conscience mentally beats me up, but when I've been doing what I'm supposed to do and decide to indulge I don't feel guilty because I've earned it! I'm all about the 80/20 rule. Clean eating and regular exercise 80% of the time. Indulge 20% of the time. 
5. Shopping is so much more fun - When I'm unhappy with my size or appearance due to lack of proper diet & exercise the last thing I want to do is set foot inside 1 of those horrible department store dressing rooms filed with 20,000 mirrors. When I'm doing I should be shopping is an awesome experience. My clothes fit better and I love the way I look in them. 
6. I'm more confident - In order be my best I need to feel my best. Clean eating & exercise makes me feel more confident. I promise you'll notice an extra pep in your step! 
7. I save money! When I'm all about the foods I'm not supposed to have it means I'm eating out. I'm one of those people who doesn't keep unhealthy foods in my home (chips, candy, etc *I have no control* so if I want something it means I'm buying it. Healthy eating not only keeps my body looking right, but it also keeps money in my pockets! 
8. My body is my temple - I'm blessed. God has blessed me with health, strength, two working arms & legs and 10 fingers and toes. I only get one body and although I struggle at times I want to take care of what I've been blessed with. I want to be as healthy as I can for as long as I can not just for me, but for my family and friends. 
9. It's a way for me to inspire others - I'm by no means a bragger, but you never know who you will inspire in the gym or just by making healthier food choices! 
10. I get to try new recipes! - In my humble opinion of it's easy to cook something that's unhealthy. More butter? Sure! Another handful of cheese? Why not! The real challenge is to try or create healthy recipes or healthier alternatives of your favorite recipes. 
11. *BONUS* Healthy hair starts from the inside out! I'm trying to have healthy bra strap length hair and a healthy body to go along with it! *two snaps*

Why is healthy eating & exercise important to you?

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Wash Day With Side Swept Curls

This wash day was awesome if I do say so myself. On Friday after work I felt my hair and knew that it was time to wash it. In the name of prevention I like to wash my hair when I can feel that it's becoming dry and heavy with product. Here's what I did:

• Detangled using Mane N Tail Detangler.
• Dampened hair with water and applied KeraCare Humecto conditioner.
• Sat under my Gold N Hot conditioning cap for about 30 minutes.
• Rinsed and shampooed with Shea Moisture Moisture Retention Shampoo
• Rinsed and applied a small amount of the Generic Version of the Matrix Biolage Detangling Shampoo.
• Applied my usual leave ins (Kimmay tube leave in, GVP Smoothing Serum, & Chi Keratin Mist).
• T-shirt dried my hair for about 40 minutes.
• Air dried for an additional 20 and sat under the dryer for about 10.
• Moisturized & sealed using my Holy Grail product Giovanni Direct Leave in & coconut oil. 
• Applied JBCO to my scalp and sealed my ends with it. 

Style: I was so over my boring old bun. I needed some spice in my life and after being inspired by an Instagram post from a college classmate I decided to recreate the style with my own twist! This lovely lady is natural and have a side updo created from an old twist out. Well I haven't yet mastered twistouts or braidouts for that matter, but I have learned how to use the heck out of Flexi Rods! I twisted my hair around my head and used caruso steam rollers to create the curls. Throughout the week I just reset my hair by throwing a few flexi rods in it each night with a bit of Dark N Lovely Au Naturale Curl Moisturizing Souffle (Review coming soon!).

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